End Credits
by Lucks
Summary: The night before Vinnie's first movie premier, something tragic happens that leads to a ghost from the past returning and upsetting the situation even more, but at the same time, that person brings everything back together, the way it should be.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** Yeah, me no own. Thank you and have a nice day. :cheesy tour guide Barbie smile as she shoves Vinnie in her closet:

End Credits.

A man walked onto the stage. Everyone in the audience applauded. "And now, a word from the director." The man walked off the stage.

The audience burst into a standing ovation. Then another man walked on stage. This man had curly blonde hair and blue eyes. Sad blue eyes. He made his way to the microphone. Then, after tapping on it twice, he said, "Hi. I'm Douglas Howser. I used to be a doctor." He gave a little half smile. "Well, I came to say that a very unfortunate event happened yesterday. Vincent Delpino, the director of this film and my best friend..." Doogie looked around the room. He spotted his wife, Wanda, in the front row with tears in her brown eyes. Then, two rows behind her, he saw someone he never thought he'd ever see again. With a worried look in the girl's dark blue eyes, she nervously slid a piece of her short blonde hair behind her ears. Doogie cleared his throat. "I'm sorry... Um... Vinnie was in a car accident." A silence fell over the room. Everyone had expressions of shock. "He's now in a coma. But, I know that he'd like to thank all of you for coming. We're all proud of him. And, I would like you all to know, that though he might not be here in body for much longer..." Doogie cleared his throat again. "...he'll be here in spirit, thank you." And with that, Doogie walked off of the stage.

The room was absolutely silent. They all stared at the spot where Doogie Howser previously stood. Some people still held the expression of shock, some cried.

Vincent Delpino, known as Vinnie to close family and friends, was Doogie's best friend. He moved next door to Doogie when they were five. He helped Doogie bring out the kid in himself. He helped Doogie with his leukemia. He helped Doogie with his girl problems (though he wasn't much with the ladies anyways). And he was always there, and no matter how annoying he got, Doogie still loved him like a brother. Now, it was Doogie's turn to always be there.

The night before the first showing of his first motion picture, Vinnie had been in that shiny new car of his. He'd made sure not to drink and drive. He even buckled his seat belt. And he always remembered to watch for traffic lights and drive on the correct side of the road.

The driver of the other car was not so considerate to other drivers on the road.

Vinnie had just left dinner with his latest date, Ericka Jacobsen. She was a model, and drank heavily when she was nervous. Needless to say, that night she was nervous. Anyways, they got into the car. Vinnie buckled his seat belt and told her to buckle her own, but she refused. He sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do, and he pulled out of the parking lot.

About ten miles down the street, as soon as the light turned green, another car came out of no where, driving on the wrong side of the road.

It was a head-on collision. The front of Vinnie's brand new BMW was completely demolished. Ericka was violently jerked out the windshield, she died instantly. Vinnie, however, was not so lucky. It took paramedics an hour to extract his broken body from the car. He was rushed to the hospital. He was declared to be alive and in a coma.

Four hours later, at 2 a.m., Douglas Howser, Vinnie's best friend and 'emergency contact', was contacted.

The showing of the movie was the first time Doogie had left his side all since.

And, after the showing, Doogie and his wife, Wanda, went back to the hospital.

There were nurses in his hospital room to check up on him. Nurse Curly Canfield, previously Curly Spaulding, was one of them.

Doogie wrapped on the window and Curly looked up, tears in her eyes. She smiled softly and opened the door, wrapping Doogie into a warm hug.

"Hi Doogie." She sniffled into his ear.

"Hi Curly." He smiled, it was good to be back in Los Angeles.

Curly wiped her eyes and hugged Wanda. "You can both go in." She sniffled.

Wanda and Doogie nodded. "Thanks, Curly." Wanda said.

Curly nodded and walked off.

Wanda took Doogie's hand and they both went into the hospital room. There was Vinnie. He was attached to so many cords and machines. He was always small, but he looked so much smaller with everything surrounding him.

Wanda wiped a tear and sat in a chair next to Vinnie. She took one of his cold palms in her own hands. "Hi Vinnie. How ya doin' kiddo? It's Wanda." She smiled and let out a shaky breath as a tear rolled down her cheek. "You'll stick through this wontcha? I know you can do it." The smile wiped off her face. "You're so brave." And then she stood up and broke into sobs.

Doogie came over and wrapped Wanda in his strong arms, a tear rolled down his own cheek and into her hair.

Then there was a soft wrap on the window. Doogie and Wanda looked up to see her. She was the girl Doogie had seen in the audience. But now she was crying. It was Janine Stewart, Vinnie's first love...

Doogie motioned for her to enter and she slowly opened the door.

She ran to Wanda and the two embraced, sobbing. Then, with caution, she looked up at Doogie. He hesitated at first, but then he too embraced her. She shuddered and let out a shaky breath.

After they hugged, she wiped her eyes and looked down at Vinnie. She couldn't stand the site and quickly looked away. "How's he doing?" She asked Doogie, wiping away another tear.

Doogie shook his head. "It doesn't look good. The doctors don't know if they can keep him with us much longer."

Janine bit her bottom lip and looked back at Vinnie. "Doogie, can't you do something?" She looked back up at Doogie, hopefully.

Doogie shook his head.

"Of course you can. You have to!" Janine said, sobbing. "You've been playing doctor with him since you were five. You've been operating on him since you were fourteen! You've got to do something!"

"Janine, it's not that easy. I'm not a doctor anymore-"

"No, but you have a degree. That's got to count for something."

"I don't want to talk about it." Doogie looked down at Vinnie and something made him feel sick to his stomach. "I have to go." And with that, he left the room.

Janine looked at Wanda. "I'm so sorry." She whispered.

Wanda walked over and hugged her friend. "Do you want me to leave you alone with him?" She glanced down at Vinnie.

Janine sniffled and nodded.

Wanda nodded, kissed Janine on the forehead, and exited the room to find Doogie.

Janine let out another shaky breath and sat down on the chair that Wanda had just been sitting in. "Vinnie? It's Janine. Wow, I haven't talked to you in forever." She let out a little laugh. "I want you to be ok, Vinnie. You have to understand that." She clutched his hand with her own. "If I flashed you would you wake up?" She asked hopefully.

He didn't even smile in his almost lifeless sleep. His pale skin was adorned with deep cuts, probably from glass and metal. The casual smirk that was always plastered on his lips was now turned into a solemn and almost painful expression.

Janine kissed his hand. "I love you."

Doogie was in the cafeteria, drinking a cup of coffee. It was midnight, and it had been two and a half hours since Janine showed up. He was all alone and thinking.

He could imagine himself in his old hospital scrubs. Curly would be sitting across from him, eating a salad because she had to fit into a dress of some sort. Next to him would be Raymond Alexander, a good friend of Doogie's who held Doogie and Vinnie at gun point in a convenient store once. (But, Raymond cleaned up and now worked at the hospital.) Then, Vinnie would slide up next to Doogie and, instead of greeting him first, would talk to Curly. "Curly, how about dinner, tonight? You know you want me Curly." And then he'd flash her a smile.

"So sorry, Vinnie, but I have a date." Curly would smile.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, the old dude." Vinnie would roll his eyes and then turn to Doogie. "Doog, you want to go to a party tonight?" He'd ask in that Queens accent that he hadn't dropped since he was five.

"Sorry, Vinnie, I'm on call tonight." Doogie would reply.

And then Vinnie would glare and say. "Boy, what a friend! Never spending time with your best friend. I'm like a brother to you Doog. But no more. Going to work and not partying? You make me sick. I've disowned you! Goodbye!" Then, he'd walk half way out of the cafeteria, turn around, grin, and say. "I'll see ya later, Doog."

Doogie would laugh and reply, "Bye, Vin."

Doogie smiled softly, fondly remembering the good times he had with his friend.

That's when Janine walked in. She yawned, made herself a cup of coffee, and then sat down next to Doogie. "Hi."

"Hi." He said, staring into his coffee.

"Listen, Doogie, I'm sorry I lashed out on you in there. I was being rash. I'm just worried about him, you know how that goes." She apologized.

"Yeah. It's alright. But I have a question for you."

"What's that?"

"Why did you leave?" Doogie looked up at her and a shock spread over her face. She opened and then closed her mouth, thinking of something to say, finally, she said it.

"Well, we had to go to college. I just chose one out of state. Simple." She stared down into her own coffee.

"Janine, you know what I meant." Doogie sighed, but didn't take his eyes off of her.

A tear slid off the tip of her nose and landed in her coffee. Another left a streak down her cheek. "I don't know." She whispered. Then she looked up at Doogie. "I thought it was right at the time. I mean, I never thought it would've worked out. I was all into rumors and that. I heard that long distance relationships never worked. I guess I was wrong." She smiled softly, meaning Doogie and Wanda's relationship.

"Yes, but you didn't have to not contact us. We all thought something terrible had happened to you. All we ever got was a Christmas card." Doogie stated.

Janine sniffled. "I'm sorry." She whispered. "Doogie, I miss him so much." She crumpled on the table and sobbed into her arm.

Doogie gently rubbed her back and sighed. "Me too, Janine, me too..."

_You like the first chappy? Please say you do! It'll make me happy! Read and review and all that jazz!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I still don't own them. :pats Vinnie on the head and smiles innocently:

Mrs. Delpino was clutching her son's hand tightly. A single tear hadn't fallen down her cheek since she'd arrived. All she did was stare at the wall behind Vinnie's bed, not daring to look down at his face.

Mr. Delpino snored in a chair on the opposite side of the bed. And Vinnie's sister had just left moments before to pick meet her husband and daughter at McDonald's for a late dinner.

Doogie tapped on the window and Mr. Delpino jerked awake. "Can I come in?" Doogie mouthed. Mr. Delpino nodded and gestured for Doogie to come in.

Doogie sighed and walked in. He shook Mr. Delpino's hand and hugged Mrs. Delpino. "You both should go home and get some rest. Okay? Come back tomorrow." He advised.

Mr. Delpino nodded and wrapped a jacket around his wife's shoulders. She wimpered and looked down at her son, only to look away as quickly as possible.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Delpino. I'll keep watch over him for you." Doogie smiled softly.

Her lip quivered once, then she nodded and kissed Doogie's cheek. "Take care of my baby." She whispered in his ear. Then Mr. Delpino led her out of the room.

Doogie sighed and sat where Mrs. Delpino was previously sitting. "Hey Vinnerino." He greeted Vinnie with that old nickname. "Did you know that this is the same room Charmange was in after her surgery? You remember her don't you?" Doogie snorted. It was good to talk to Vinnie again in person. Even if he was in a coma. Doogie knew he would still be listening.

Janine looked in the window of the small hospital room and smiled. Doogie was talking to Vinnie and laughing. She knew he was retelling Vinnie things that happened between the two friends. A tear slid down her cheek, but she was still smiling. She knew Vinnie wouldn't make it through, but she wished and hoped and prayed that he would.

Doogie was now crying too. He was hunched over the hospital bed, holding Vinnie's hand. "I'm gonna miss you, Vin." He whispered.

Wanda walked up to find Janine on the ground with her back on the wall underneath the window. Her face was buried in her folded arms and her legs were pulled up to her chest. She was almost the twelve-year-old Wanda had met nine years earlier.

"Janine?" Wanda walked over and took a seat next to her old friend.

Janine looked up. Her eyes were red and puffy and her face was streaked with tears. "I didn't mean to leave. I really didn't. I was scared, Wanda. I was scared that Vinnie would go off to film school and he wouldn't love me anymore. So I just ran away. I ran away from my past, present, and future. I didn't mean to, but I did." She sobbed.

Wanda wrapped her arms around Janine. "I know you didn't mean to. Shhh..." She rocked back and forth, stroking Janine's hair.

Janine sniffled. "He's not going to make it, Wanda. And I'm scared of that too."

Wanda didn't know what to say. She too knew that it was near impossible that Vinnie would make it through. She had overheard the doctors telling each other that he probably wouldn't make it through the night. But she wasn't about to tell anybody else that. "I'm scared too." She whispered.

That night, Wanda took Doogie for a walk around the hospital. She knew he needed to get out of that room before he broke down completely, and she knew Janine needed to get in that hospital room alone.

Doogie stared blankly at the white walls of the corridors. He couldn't stop thinking about Vinnie and how this may be his last night. He let out a shaky breath and felt Wanda squeeze harder on his hand.

"I'm sorry, Doogie." Wanda whispered. She rested her head on his arm and bit her bottom lip. "Wanna talk about it?"

Doogie sighed. "About what?"

Wanda rolled her eyes. "All right... um... tell me how much your father hated Vinnie coming over."

Doogie smiled down at Wanda and rolled his eyes. "He hated it."

Janine was in her car, driving blindly down the road. It was raining, but in the daytime. She looked at the piece of paper Wanda had given her. Then she looked up at the large gate. This was the place. A tear rolled down her cheek as the gate opened. She drove in to see a large group of people. They were all wearing black and all of them gathered around a large black casket. She slowly got out of her car and trudged through the grass until she reached the spot. She stood next to Wanda, and Wanda grabbed her hand.

Everyone from Janine's childhood was there. Doogie, Wanda, Mr. and Mrs. Delpino, Vinnie's sister and her family, Mr. and Mrs. Howser, Mr. Plenn, his new wife, and Maggie, Wanda's little sister, Janine's senior French teacher, her husband, and their two beautiful daughters, Danielle and Bernadette. Susie Berlutti was there, so was Jack McGuire, Curly and Ben Canfield, and Raymond Alexander. Then Janine noticed two more people, her parents...

A man in a dark robe held a Bible. "We gather here today to mourn the loss of Vincent Delpino."

Janine's world spun. She couldn't breathe. She was extremely dizzy. And if she was still fourteen, she would've announced that she needed to yak. She fanned herself and held Wanda tightly. Then her legs gave way and she fell to the ground, sobbing.

Later, everyone walked past the casket to say their final goodbyes. First was his family, naturally, and then Doogie and Wanda and their families. Finally it was her turn and she looked inside. He looked so peaceful in that suit. But his face was still in that uncomfortable, painful, expression. Then he opened his eyes and his face was menacing. Janine screamed.

Then, she jerked awake. She looked blindly around the hospital room, her heart beating at five hundred million miles an hour or more. She couldn't breathe, sweat was pouring off her forehead. Her hands were clutching the arms of the chair she was sitting in.

Finally she realized that it was all a dream. She took many deep breaths and let go of the arms of the chair, collapsing into them. She looked at the body on the bed and its face still held that expression. She couldn't look any longer, so, instead, she looked away. She glanced frantically around the room at anything that wasn't Vinnie.

She spotted the door, ran a hand through her hair, wiped the sweat off her forehead and cautiously stood up. Then she made her way to the door.

"Vinnie," she said.

"Hmm?" Came the reply.

"I'm going to go get something to eat. I'll be right back." She replied. Then it hit her. She spun around. The expression of pain was wiped off the angelic face of the man on the hospital bed, in its place was an expression of discomfort. "Vinnie?"

The man's dark eyes slowly fluttered open. Then he squinted. "Janine?" He whispered.

_So, how did you like this one, eh? Review and all that jazz!_


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I DON'T OWN THEM OKAY:breaks down crying:

_A/N: This is the last chappy:tear: But, I might right like a sequel or something, depending on my mood and if I ever get out of this writer's block. P.s.-Just some info. on this fic, I wrote it all on my way to Bismarck, ND. So, I want to say thank you readers for saving my life in the seven hour car ride, and thank you Steven Bochco for allowing me to watch Doogie Howser, fall in love, and write this fic! Teehee!_

Wanda walked Doogie back to Vinnie's room, and the two of them about had a heart attack. They looked into the window and saw Janine, crying but laughing, and Vinnie, eyes half closed, but smiling.

Janine had Vinnie's hand and she was kissing his face over and over and over again.

Doogie and Wanda rushed into the room. "Vinnie!" They both exclaimed.

"Hey, guys. What're you doing here?" He rasped.

Doogie gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Never do that to me _ever_ again." He laughed.

Wanda kissed Vinnie's cheek. "Good to have ya back, Vinnie."

Janine was positively beaming. Wanda wiped a tear off her own grinning cheek. And Doogie couldn't be more relieved.

"You know," Vinnie almost whispered. "I saw this amazing white light, but then I remembered you, Doog." He smiled softly.

"What d'ya mean, Vinnie?" Janine asked.

"I didn't let him give up when he had cancer. So, I figured he wouldn't let me give up." Vinnie smiled.

They all laughed, and cried, and then the nurses came in. Curly, who was working the late night that night, rushed in, screaming. She showered Vinnie in kisses just like Janine did. "Oh, Vinnie, thank goodness!"

Vinnie smiled. "Woah woah woah, Curly, I always knew you wanted me, but please, not in public."

They all laughed. He was back alright.

A tearful Curly checked his stats. "Vinnie, you're going to be great. Your breathing's a little unsteady, but that's going to settle down in a little while. I'm glad your back." She smiled, kissing his cheek. "Now, let's get you sitting upright. And then you need some rest. I'll get you something to eat."

So, with help from Doogie, Vinnie was sitting upright. He smiled and looked at his friends.

Wanda wrapped an arm around Janine's shoulder. "Let's leave the boys alone for a minute, ok? We'll get some ice cream."

Janine nodded. She looked at Doogie and smiled. Then she saw Vinnie's handsome face and sighed. Wanda led her out of the room.

"Hey Doog." Vinnie sighed.

"Hey Vin. How's life?" He smiled.

"A lot better than death." Vinnie smiled back.

"I saw your latest film."

"Huh?"

"The film. I saw it last week."

"I've been out for a week!"

Doogie laughed. "Yeah. You think you had it bad. I've never been so stressed in my life."

"Uh...sorry?" Vinnie raised an eyebrow.

Doogie laughed again. "But the movie..._you_, Vin, are the genius. Haven't seen something that good since Bogey."

"Really?" Vinnie asked, doubtfully.

"Dead serious."

Meanwhile, in the cafeteria, Wanda and Janine were scooping their ice cream. Janine sighed, smiling, and slid another spoonful of chocolate into her mouth.

"Wow. This has been quite the weekend." Wanda stated.

Janine laughed and nodded. "Too true." She sighed again.

"So, what're you going to do when Vinnie's better?" Wanda asked, eyeing Janine.

Janine looked up, rolled her eyes, and shrugged. "I think I might stick around for a little while. If that's alright with you, of course." She stared at Wanda.

Wanda rolled her eyes. "Yeah yeah yeah."

Janine smiled again. "I'm just happy everything's okay now. You know?"

"Yeah, I know."

An hour later, Doogie found Wanda and Janine, giggling their heads off in the cafeteria.

"Hello, ladies." He said, grinning.

"Hello, Doctor." Janine winked.

Doogie ignored her. "Wanda, do you want to come with me to tell everyone that Vinnie's okay?"

Wanda smiled, nodded, and stood up. "I'd love to."

Janine looked up at them like they were crazy, leaving her alone. She cleared her throat.

"Go talk to Vinnie." Wanda smiled. And with that, her and Doogie walked off.

Janine frowned, but decided to take their advice, and she went to Vinnie's room.

There he was, in the same spot she'd left him. He was sitting up, frowning at the machines all around him. The cute look on his face made her laugh. She wrapped lightly on the door with her knuckles.

Vinnie looked up and smiled softly. "Come on in. I thought Doog left me alone."

Janine nodded and sat down in the chair next to his bed. "So... how're you keeping up?" She asked.

Vinnie shrugged.

Janine nodded. Why was this so awkward? Oh yeah, cause he hadn't seen her in three years.

"So what did I miss?" Vinnie asked.

Janine smiled. "Not much, just a whole bunch of crying. You've got a lot of fans, Vinnie." She fidgeted in her seat, not looking up at him.

"That's not what I meant."

And she knew it too. She knew he meant what did he miss in her life. He missed a lot. But at the same time...not a lot. She didn't really do much with her life at all since she left, just hid from her past.

"Any new boys more exciting than me?" He grinned, attempting to lighten the mood.

She looked up at him and smiled softly. "Well, there was in one time when I lived in Miami-"

"Florida!"

"Yes, Vinnie, Flarida," she laughed, mimicking his accent. "But anyways, there was this Italian pool boy."

"Good choice, good choice..." Vinnie commented.

"He was disgusting! Oh My Gosh! He was all over me! And he had a really hairy chest." Janine laughed.

Vinnie laughed too. "Hey, to change the subject from gross Italians to irresistible ones-" Janine laughed. "Curly said I'm going to be in physical therapy for my legs. That means I'm going to be in this hospital _forever."_ He groaned.

Janine laughed again. "Oh don't worry Vinnie, you'll love it. Nurses in tight outfits touching your legs. It'll be so much fun." She rolled her eyes.

"Well, now that you put it that way..." Vinnie laughed.

Janine laughed too. It was good to hear that laugh again. She smiled.

"Janine, can I show you something?"

Janine raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

Vinnie looked around. "Well, you have to come closer. Come sit by me."

Janine hesitated, but made her way over to sit by him. Then something happened that she wasn't expecting. Vinnie leaned foreward and pressed his lips tightly against hers. Then, after about a minute, he finally broke off. "There, that was for all the years you've been gone." He said simply.

Janine felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She touched them softly, then her lips. Then she let out a shaky breath and looked away, though she didn't move from her spot on the bed.

"So, what're you planning on doing when you get out of here?" She asked, looking around the room.

"Make more movies, probably. I had so much fun making the first one." Vinnie sighed.

"Yeah...it was good. And Libby reminded me of someone..." Janine looked back at Vinnie.

"Oh yeah, who?"

"Oh, this girl I've known since I was really little. She fell head over heels for this guy, and even loved him, but she didn't think he loved her back. She left him, but then came back when she felt he needed her the most. Well, now she knows that he does and she doesn't know if she should stay with him forever, or if she should just leave again..." Janine let out an even shakier breath and looked down at her hands. "What do you think, Vinnie?"

"I think she should stay with him. He might need her again." Vinnie said.

Janine did it without thinking. She had no idea was she was doing, but it happened. She kissed Vinnie so hard that it knocked the wind out of both of them.

Then they heard something that was rather unusual when two people are making out in a hospital room. Applause.

Janine looked up, blushing, to find Doogie, Wanda, Wanda's parents, Doogie's parents, Vinnie's family, Curly, and Raymond.

Yeah, this was going to be a good life.

_Yep! Happy endings are definetly good. I like them. :smiles: Review!_


End file.
